Mbunda is a Bantu language of Angola and Zambia. There are several dialects: Katavola, Yauma,Bantu-Languages.com , citing Maniacky 1997 Nkangala, Mbalango, Sango, Ciyengele ("Shamuka"), and Ndundu, all of which are closely related.Bantu-Languages.com , citing Maniacky 1997 Mbunda was one of six languages selected by the Instituto de Línguas Nacionais (National Languages Institute) for an initial phase to establish spelling rules in 1980http://glottolog.org/resource/languoid/id/mbun1249 For additional sources to facilitate teaching in schools and promoting its use. Angola Harmonização das línguas bantu dificultada pela fonética e grafia
Sounds Mbunda is similar to Luchazi, but has some differences in the consonants. Among other differences, where Luchazi has , Mbunda has . Where Luchazi has , Mbunda has dental .
Vowels Like other languages in eastern Angola and Zambia, Mbunda language has five contrastive vowels:
Front(unrounded)Central(unrounded)Back(rounded) high i u mid ɛ ɔ low a
Consonants Voiced plosives only occur as prenasalized stops, where they contrast with aspirated plosives. Otherwise only tenuis plosives are found in Mbunda.Tusona: Luchazi Ideographs : a Graphic Tradition of West-Central Africa By Gerhard Kubik, page 300
+Prenasalized consonantsAspiratedVoicedPlace of formationSampleWord SoundTranslation mp mb bilabialmbandu sore nths ndthz dentalndthzili power nt nd alveolarndolome brother — nj alveopalatalnjamba elephant nk ng velarngonde moon
Orthography Graphic RepresentationPhonetic Symbol(*)Word ExampleWord SoundTranslation a choose mb crowd ch (used with nouns)or c true hunter nd lion e yes f gunpowder ng cow, ox ŋ crab h outside i wait j reveal k enter l plate, dish m offence n my mother ndthz war nk court ny or maybe brother or sister-in-law o that one p start mp male animal t asleep, sleepy th time ths die thz dress up u where is he (she) v boat, canoe w he (she) is not here x forest y myself
Population Mbunda is spoken by the Mbunda people of the Moxico Province and Cuando Cubango Province of Angola and western Zambia.The elites of Barotseland, 1878-1969: a political history of Zambia's Western Province: a. Gerald L. Caplan Publisher: C. Hurst & Co Publishers Ltd, 1970 upon the migration of among others, the Ciyengele,Bantu-Languages.com , citing Maniacky 1997
Dialects The Mbunda language is not spoken exactly the same way in Zambia and Angola. In Zambia it has a strong upper teeth contact with the tongue, to pronounce words like: , , and many more. The difficult sounds represented by .A.W, July 1, 1917, A Comparative Vocabulary of Sikololo-Silui-Simbunda, African Affairs, Oxford University Press Mbunda language in Angola and Namibia is spoken without the sounds (interdentals), like in the Luchazi language;Tusona: Luchazi Ideographs : a Graphic Tradition of West-Central Africa By Gerhard Kubik, pages 291, 292 the words above are pronounced as , , . Even within Zambia, the Mbunda language spoken by the Chiyengele group that migrated earlier is different from that spoken by the Mbunda group that fled into Zambia as a consequence of the Mbunda-Portuguese war of 1914. That is why the Mbunda language of the Chiyengele group, mainly found in Mongu, is nicknamed "Shamuka",Bantu-Languages.com , citing Maniacky 1997 heavily influenced by Lozi language. The same term can be attributed to the Mbunda language in Namibia, which is heavily influenced by the Nyemba and Luchazi languages.
Numerals Numerical counting in Mbunda follows the usual numerals but in Mbunda words. Fill ups are easily made using small numerals.
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
20
22
30
33
40
44
50
55
60
66
70
77
80
88
90
99
100
101
110
111
152
163
174
185
186
197
200
201
300
400
500
600
700
800
900
1,000
1,111
2,000
3,000
4,000
5,000
6,000
7,000
8,000
9,000
10,000
11,111
20,000
30,000
40,000
50,000
60,000
70,000
80,000
90,000
100,000
200,000
300,000
400,000
500,000
600,000
700,000
800,000
900,000
1,000,000
Names and meanings Mbunda names are many; listed are the ones commonly used.name="google4" They can be given either to a male or female, except a very few that are for females only and have been indicated here by (f). Some Mbunda names are similar to those of other nationalities which also have their roots in the Luba Kingdom, such as Kaunda, Katongo, Kavanda, Mulenga, Muvanga, Mwila, Kavunda, Kalunga, Muti, Chiinga, Kavalata, Chiti, Nkonde and others. Also similar to Mbunda names are Chipoya, Chipango, Musole, Kayata, Ngambo, Kawengo, Kapisa and Musumali, found in other ethnic groups which trace their origins to Mwantiyavwa the king of the Ruund. These similarities give further evidence that Mbunda people interacted with the Kingdom of Lunda and Kingdom of Luba,Almanac of African Peoples & Nations, page 523. By Muḥammad Zuhdī Yakan, Transaction Publishers, Rutgers - The State University, 35 Berrue Circle, Piscataway, New Jersey 008854-8042 , in the 15th century. The commonly used Mbunda names are as follows:
(pl. )
. Name of the 14th Mbunda King who ruled Mbundaland in the 17th century in what is now Angola
()
. Name of the Senior Mbunda Chief in Bulozi, declared by King Mulena Mulambwa of the Aluyi people
() for females, () ()
() () () () () () (vuthampu - vusampu) . Name of the famous 20th Mbunda King who fought and defeated the Chokwe people in what is now Angola
()
() . Name of the 22nd Mbunda King who was installed by the Portuguese colonialists, after abducting King Mwene Mbandu I Lyondthzi Kapova, the 21st Monarch of Mbundaland in what is now Angola . (Not Mbunda by origin but used today)
see Kawengo . Name of the 23rd Mbunda King and the first to be installed by the Mbunda people after the restoration of the Mbunda monarchy in what is now Angola, since the abduction of the 21st Mbunda King who resisted the Portuguese occupation of Mbundaland in 1914
is the name of a river in eastern Angola () ()
from ()
() (), see Makayi () (f) (f)
. Name of the 21st Mbunda King who resisted the Portuguese occupation of Mbundaland in 1914 in what is now Angola (f)
(), see Kaliata () see Mathumba () () . Name of the first Mbunda Chief who migrated to Bulozi in the 16th century
() () () (f) () (f) () ()
(f) see Katongo
(muxaa - mushaa)
see Katota
() () ()
(), . Name of the 22nd Mbunda King who was installed by the Portuguese colonialists, after abducting King Mwene Mbandu I Lyondthzi Kapova, the 21st Monarch of Mbundaland in what is now Angola
(the abbreviation of )
See also Mbunda Kingdom Mbunda people
References
Literature Jacky Maniacky, 1997, "Contribution à l'étude des langues bantoues de la zone K: analyse comparative et sous-groupements", Mémoire pour l'obtention du DEA de langues, littératures et sociétés, études bantoues, INALCO (Paris - France), 101p. José Redinha, 1975, Etnias e Culturas de Angola, Luanda: Instituto de Investigação Científica de Angola; reprinted fac-simile by the Associação das Universidades de Língua Portuguesa, 2009,